Watanabe (personal) is not expected to pick up his $2.6 million player option this offseason, but rather head to the Japan professional basketball league, Keith Smith of Spotrac.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Watanabe announced the news during an Instagram Live session. Assuming he does not ultimately return to the NBA, the six-year veteran will bookend his career with stints in Memphis. Although, he only played five games for the team this year, as most of his season was spent in Phoenix. His most productive tenure came with the Nets during the 2022-23 season, where the forward averaged 5.6 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.0 triples across 16.0 minutes per game.